


Peter Revs his Engine

by punkybunny



Series: Just Spiderling Things [4]
Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), Spider-Man - All Media Types
Genre: Family Fluff, Father-Son Relationship, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Peter Parker Needs a Hug, Peter Parker is a Mess, Peter purrs, Precious Peter Parker, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Touch-Starved, for some reason??? idk
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-30
Updated: 2020-10-30
Packaged: 2021-03-08 18:00:12
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,734
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27290842
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/punkybunny/pseuds/punkybunny
Summary: "It was silly and embarrassing and just plain weird. That night, as Peter lay staring at his phone, he tried to force down the rumble rising in his chest as his hoodie's residual warmth spread through his limbs and his eyelids grew heavy. He wouldn't tell anyone. He wouldn't purr. Peter Parker didn't purr. He was a human, not some sort of freak."Aka Peter purrs and tries to keep it a secret because he's embarrassed. Surprise: that doesn't last long.
Relationships: Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Series: Just Spiderling Things [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1782811
Comments: 20
Kudos: 541
Collections: The Best Irondad/Spiderson Fics, The Best Peter Parker Whump Fics





	Peter Revs his Engine

**Author's Note:**

> I've been wanting to write a fic where Peter purrs because the concept is so cute, but I didn't know how to go about it! Maybe I shouldn't be putting this story in this series because there's literally only 1(one) spider that purrs???... eh who cares.
> 
> Enjoy this weird fluffy mess!!! <3

It was embarrassing. That was the one word Peter could use to describe it. And really, isn't that the main feeling that people spend their teenage years trying to avoid? At least that was a thought that made Peter feel just a tad normal. 

When it first happened, Peter genuinely wondered if he was sick or something. He had had a busy day of schoolwork and patrolling, having just climbed through the window to his bedroom after stopping the seventh mugging of the night. He immediately plopped down onto his sheets and then the rumbling in his chest started. Briefly, he realized that he shouldn't be making a noise like that. But he was too tired to dwell on the thought for too long. He just felt so content right then.

The second time it happened, Peter had just fetched himself a steaming mug of tea (May said tea was supposed to help him sleep better) and a warm hoodie straight from the dryer. Peter huddled up in bed and began to doze off, taking small sips of chamomile water. And there it was again! A rumbling in his chest. What was wrong with him?

He assumed - like most odd things that happen with his body lately - that it was a spider thing. The boy pulled up google and frantically tried to find answers. And sure enough, there was apparently one spider, the male wolf spider, that purred. Just his luck. Peter just had to get bitten by the one spider that purred (or maybe the spider that bit him was a hybrid? That thing sure didn't look normal). 

But as he looked into it, the wolf spider purred to attract mates or something like that. Which was not why Peter had purred. He purred when he was content, much like a cat would. Maybe it had to do with the fact that even though Peter was part spider, he was still a mammal? 

Honestly, he had no clue how his body worked the way it did or what any of this meant. It was silly and embarrassing and just plain weird. That night, as Peter lay staring at his phone, he tried to force down the rumble rising in his chest as his hoodie's residual warmth spread through his limbs and his eyelids grew heavy. He wouldn't tell anyone. He wouldn't purr. Peter Parker didn't purr. He was a human, not some sort of freak. 

\---

It turns out, vowing to never let himself purr when he received comfort turned out to be much easier said than done. 

Peter would be leaving for school in the morning, wishing May a good day at work with a smile and a kiss to her cheek. His aunt would give him a warm hug and bid him goodbye, and for some reason, it took a good portion of his willpower to not purr. The more he thought about how he shouldn't be making that noise, it wasn't allowed, the harder it seemed to suppress it. 

One day, the teen was sitting at lunch with Ned and MJ, all three engaging in a heated discussion about which children's toy was better: Legos or Pokemon. MJ was an avid Pokemon fan and it wasn't a surprise to anyone that Ned and Peter were on the Lego side. When suddenly Ned casually slung his arm around Peter's shoulder, and the boy had to resist the urge to lean in and purr. The whole day he was feeling particularly clingy, just itching for some wholesome platonic touching. 

Peter must have cringed or pulled some sort of weird face, because the conversation abruptly paused and Ned was asking if he was okay. Peter played it off like nothing happened, which he liked to think he was decent at. Luckily, no one pried and the group continued on as usual.

Don't even get Peter started on Tony. The boy had been getting much closer to his mentor lately and he liked to think of him like a father figure. He had an inkling that the man might feel the same way, but he never felt the need to confirm anything. He didn't want to make it awkward, and they basically had that sort of relationship already, so he was content. 

Tony was very touchy when it came to showing his affection. A hug or a pat on the back came easier to him than words. And lately, that sort of affection was Peter's weakness. He had looked up what he was feeling online to find some answers, and the term 'touch-starved' was used frequently. Touch-starved. Was Peter starving himself of touch because he was scared he might purr? He appeared to be just making himself more sensitive to touch, so that any form of it at all nowadays had the boy forcing down a rumbling in his chest.

Tony would ruffle his hair, wrap him up in a tight hug, or even just rest his hand on Peter's shoulder and it was enough to have the teen almost tearing up. His chest, his throat was starting to hurt. To ache. 

Maybe there was actually a reason he purred? Maybe it actually was beneficial to him? Did it soothe him? He assumes that it does that, but is it really worth it? He already felt like a freak before the purring started. Hell, he felt like a freak before he was bit! Back when he was just a nerd in glasses with horrible asthma. 

But now, he purrs. Like a cat or something!

But damn, his chest was aching lately. He found himself coughing, sometimes breaking into fits of wheezing. He had such low energy, always grouchy and on edge. Peter felt himself constantly fidgeting, itching to do something. And he knew what it was. It was his body telling him in every way it knew how, that he needed to purr! 

So eventually, Peter gave in. He would make sure May wasn't home, and he would huddle under his bedsheets and try to relax. Then, the teen would let himself purr, but just in small intervals. He didn't want people to start worrying about him, thinking he was sick or hurt. With the way Mr. Stark was so overprotective of him, it was only a matter of time before he started to suspect something. So Peter would just purr a tiny bit, until he wasn't feeling like crap anymore. Even if it did make him feel embarrassed, like a freak. 

\---

Tony was going on a business trip to Berlin for the week, and the news of it seemed to drain Peter of any energy he was having while working in the lab with the man that Sunday. They had been hanging out the whole weekend, watching movies and modifying the web shooters, so when Tony dropped the news, Peter was bummed. The past couple weeks they had started having labs days after school Tuesdays and Thursdays, instead of once a week on Wednesday. Peter had so many plans for what they would do. He wanted to get Tony to watch TGBBS with him. 

But now the boy had to wait until Friday to see his father figure again. Peter tried not to frown at the news. Mr. Stark didn't need him to be dramatic, Peter wasn't a baby. 

Though as the week progressed, Peter found his energy diminishing. May had been working even more shifts, so there were days where he didn't even see her before or after school. He was just so lonely, no matter how childish it sounded. He didn't purr once the whole week, and he considered forcing it out in order to soothe himself, but honestly, he lacked the energy or resolve. 

Ned noticed his best friend's sinking mood throughout the week, and offered to come over and hang out. Peter agreed, but then something came up during his patrol, and by the time he was ready to head back, it was too late. He promised Ned they would hang out another day. This just soured Peter's mood further. 

Finally, it was Friday and Peter felt as though he wouldn't be capable of waiting for the school day to be over. Mr. Stark would be coming back tonight, but Peter was going to get a ride to the Tower (courtesy of Happy) and wait for him there. Then he would sleep over and they would spend the weekend together, tinkering in the lab til their hearts' content. 

It was an uneventful day at school, no big tests or anything. Flash just glared at Peter in passing in the hallway instead of his usual taunts. There was no Decathlon practice today but with Peter's level of excitement, he probably wouldn't have been able to sit through it anyway.

Finally the last bell rang and Peter bolted upright, calling a quick goodbye to Ned and dashing outside to the sleek black car waiting for him. Happy seemed to startle, obviously not expecting Peter to arrive so quickly, the boy practically colliding with the parked car. "Hey, kid." 

Peter greeted Happy and went off on a tangent about his school day. His bad mood from the week had left him tired but he plowed on, letting the anticipation bubble up. 

When they arrived at the Tower, the teen hopped out after calling out a goodbye to Happy and hearing the man grunt in reply. He jogged up to his room, which had been placed on the same floor as Tony's. He didn't know exactly why, but he assumed it was so the man could make sure he kept out of trouble. At first that annoyed Peter, he wasn't a child, he was Spider-man! But he knew Tony's protectiveness meant he cared, and well, that made his chest swell with warmth.

"Hello, Peter."

"Hi, FRI!" Peter called as he headed up to his floor in the elevator. 

"Boss wanted me to remind you to eat dinner. There are leftovers in the fridge."

Peter simultaneously rolled his eyes and grinned. Of course Tony thought he couldn't take care of himself. 

As he set his backpack into his room, the constant negativity from the week caught up with him. His lanky limbs felt heavy and a yawn escaped his lips. FRIDAY was right, he needed to eat, but right now he was so so so tired. He could just take a quick nap right? No harm in that. 

Peter changed into some sweats and looked around for a hoodie or sweater. There, sitting on his desk bathing in the setting sun's light like some sort of holy object, was Tony's old MIT hoodie. Peter had borrowed it last weekend when the lab was feeling particularly chilly. Tony said he could keep it, that he had a lot. 

Peter scooped it up and wiggled into the soft, worn red material. It definitely was too big for him, the sleeves engulfing his fingertips, but it felt incredibly warm and cozy. "FRI, please dim the lights." 

The lights were wordlessly dimmed to a level that the AI knew fit Peter's enhanced senses. The teen then curled up on top of his sheets, unconsciously bringing the sleeves of the hoodie up to his face. The smell of motor oil, coffee, and expensive cologne was still very much potent on the material. His eyelids got heavier as another yawn escaped him.

He didn't mean to start purring. Of course he didn't. Peter wasn't at his apartment right now, even if the Tower was starting to become like a second home to him. He wasn't thinking about how someone could visit this floor for any number of reasons or the fact that FRIDAY could definitely hear him. 

But he was so warm and the smells of the hoodie reminded him unconsciously of safety. He had been so exhausted, so miserable this whole week, and it was as though he was finally getting the hug from Mr. Stark that he had been needing. The rumbling started in his chest, and vaguely he knew as it got louder (more louder than he had ever felt himself purr before) that he should stop, it was embarrassing. But he was already drifting off, feeling so incredibly safe and content. 

\---

Peter drifted back to consciousness with the feeling in his chest still going strong, but there was also a familiar pressure on his head. In his hair. What was that? It was nice. 

He almost decided to let himself fade back into slumber, when distantly he heard a voice whisper, "Wake up, bug. I know you specialize in not taking care of yourself, but you need to eat something." 

Immediately Peter identified the amused, gentle voice. Tony. 

Peter's eyes snapped open and he bolted upright. As he abruptly cut off his much-needed purrs, his breath stuttered and a cough wracked his frame. Eventually he was able to regain his breath, his chest feeling crackly and a wheeze escaping his lips. Tony, who was sitting on the side of the teen's bed, drew his eyebrows together in worry and confusion. 

"Pete, you okay?" 

Peter scrambled to come up with something, anything to say. His mentor was going to think he was a freak. "Mr. Stark, I didn't know I fell asleep! I-I'm sorry, I don't know what that was! Well, maybe I kinda do, I mean, it's really weird and doesn't make much sense, but what does make sense when it comes to me?" Peter let out a fake chuckle he hoped was convincing. "Um, please don't worry about it. I know I must seem like such a-a freak right now-" 

"Kid, stop." 

Peter clamped his mouth shut, his eyes wide. Was Tony going to tell him never to purr again? To never let anyone know he was a weirdo? Or worse, would he distance himself from Peter? Tony wouldn't do that, right? 

But Peter looked up to see his father figure's face and there was only love and concern there. The expression was so parental, that Peter was floored, blinking dumbly.

Tony seemed to be trying to phrase his next words carefully, a trait that only really came to him since he started properly mentoring Peter. "Pete, I don't think you're a freak. Hell, I wouldn't even think you're a freak if you grew fangs and spit venom. You… you're just Peter." He settled a hand on the teen's knee and Peter unconsciously wiggled closer. 

"Um… y-you mean that? Cuz I was just p-purring a second ago, Mr. Stark. That's not really a thing people do. Even for spiders, it's weird!" Peter fiddled with the too-long hoodie sleeves. 

Tony chuckled, properly sitting so he was next to his mentee, their arms pressed together. "I'm gonna be honest, bug," Tony wrapped an arm around Peter's shoulders and rested his face in the boy's curls. "I thought it was pretty dang cute." 

Peter felt his cheeks flush and he opted to smoosh his face against his father figure's chest. So this was the hug he had been needing. Finally. 

"Mr. Staaaaark!" 

"Buddy, you should have heard yourself. Revving your little engine."

Peter gave a fake groan, a grin overtaking his face. He never really minded Tony's teasing all that much. Or at all.

A moment of silence settled between them, where Peter tried to fight down a purr, quietly clearing his throat and not allowing himself to take deep breaths, in fear of the rumbling starting. He knew Tony didn't mind, but Peter had never purred in front of someone before. Because of someone before. It was embarrassing. 

Mr. Stark must have noticed his issue, because the man sighed and lifted his head to try to catch the boy's eyes. "Kiddo, I feel like there's a reason you purr. It's probably not healthy to stop yourself, and I will not allow you to get hurt over this." He ran a calloused hand through brown curls. "I swear I don't mind it, bambino." 

Peter felt his eyes burn, so he buried his face back into Tony's chest. He nodded, mumbling a quiet, "Thanks." 

And then the purring started up again, the familiar rumbling of his chest and throat, the warmth and contentment hitting him like a brick. Tony shifted them both so they sat against the headboard, his arms never leaving Peter as a hand continued combing through his hair. 

Finally Peter allowed himself to relax and feel safe. 

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading!! <3


End file.
